The Air Canada Centre is an arena at 40 Bay Street, in downtown Toronto, Ontario. It is owned by Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment Ltd. , and is 665,000 square feet (62,000 m²) in size. It is the official home of the NBA's Toronto Raptors, the NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs, and the NLL's Toronto Rock. It was also home to the Toronto Phantoms of the Arena Football League during their brief existence.
History
Air Canada Centre's groundbreaking was performed in February of 1997. The site was formerly occupied by a postal distribution building; the striking facades of the east and south walls of that structure are retained on those faces of the arena. It was built to replace the legendary Maple Leaf Gardens, which was too small and aged for modern times.
Its opening NHL game was vs. the Montreal Canadiens on February 20, 1999; its opening NBA game was vs. the Vancouver Grizzlies on February 21, 1999.
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